TIME N TIDE FEBRUARY

PLUS BOB’S CARTOON!!

Something different starting this month is a cartoon from our friend and artist and just about everything else! Bob Turner. Bob has turned our island icon, the Curlew into a ‘protected species’ (sort of). A stick of dynamite in his mouth emphasises the difficulties curlews experience in competing with everyday human life, particularly their motor vehicles! SLOW DOWN and watch out for our nesting Curlews. Anyone else notice they seem to compete with the Kookaburras at about 9pm each night and at 4am each day in a cacophony of sound!!

LEAP YEAR EXTRA DAY!!

Just in case you are not aware, but 2024 is a leap year! Yes, this month of February (which normally has 28 days in it) has 29 days this year, which it does every fourth year. It is all about keeping on time with the big time clock of life! According to Space Place, it takes approximately 365.25 days for Earth to orbit the Sun — a solar year. We usually round the days in a calendar year to 365. To make up for the missing partial day, we add one day to our calendar approximately every four years. That is a leap year. So there!

ARCHBISHOP VISITS

Catholic Archbishop, His Grace Mark Coleridge visited The Church of the Holy Spirit on the last Sunday of January to celebrate Mass. Visits by an Archbishop are are to our islands, and the island Catholic congregation turned up in great support for his visit. It should be noted that mass times on the island are about to change after Fr Jose is installed as Parish Priest. David Moore has advised that these will be announced on the Church page in The Friendly Bay Islander next month!  

FATAL CAR CRASH RUSSELL ISLAND

The Queensland Police Service has stated the Forensic Crash Unit is investigating fatal two-vehicle car crash at Russell Island on Friday, January 19. Initial investigations indicate a Toyota Corolla and a Chevrolet Silverado crashed at the intersection of High Street and Bamboo Road, around 7.50pm. A 79-year-old female passenger, Pauline Oliver, a passenger in the Toyota, died at the scene. Her 81-year-old husband and driver of the Toyota, Ron Oliver, received minor injuries. The three male occupants of the Silverado, aged in their 20’s and 30’s, also received minor injuries. Police also requested anyone with any information or who has dash cam evidence to assist the investigation, should contact police.

THE BIG CLEANUP

Redland City Council works crews don’t like to let the grass grow under their feet, but the current hot and humid weather conditions have been a challenge. The wet weather and extreme heatwave conditions, combined with the holiday shut-down period, have created a backlog for some maintenance works across the city, including mowing, tree maintenance and fixing potholes. Mayor Karen Williams encouraged residents to be patient during this busier than normal time as crews catch up with their maintenance schedules and customer requests. The backlog may affect how quickly council can respond to general requests. Council is responsible for mowing 19,000 hectares of public space in its schedule – that’s an area larger than Moreton Island. Council workers also maintain a road network of more than 1300km – that’s longer than driving from here to Canberra. The recent heavy rains has damaged local roads including creating many potholes, road shoulder damage and a lot of associated debris.To report a pothole or other urgent maintenance work call Council on 3829 8999 or lodge an online request form. To report a pothole, blocked drains or other urgent maintenance work, call Council on 3829 8999 or lodge an online request form. To keep informed about the developing situation, go to the Redland Coast Disaster Dashboard.

STORY RE POSTAL DELIVERY

We had a keen reader contact us re our story about the positioning of letter and postage boxes on the grass verge in front of homes to aid island postage delivery. Our reader decided to take matters into his own hands and contact council. He got a negative response re the positioning. However, we contact Cr Mark Edwards who told us that he had been previously advised that council would not be opposed to positioning of letter and postage boxes out the front of homes. He recognises, and the department that advised him, that postal delivery is different and difficult on our islands and ‘another way’ is supported. Hence the support for our story in our January edition.